Steve Silberman is dead at age 66. He was a gay science writer and journalist who wrote the book NeuroTribes, which helped to humanize autism. His cause of death has not yet been publicly revealed. “It’s my very sad duty to inform you all that , my wonderful husband and best friend, passed away last night,” his husband Keith wrote in a BlueSky social media post on August 29. Keith asked Silberman’s friends and followers to “please take a moment to remember” the deceased author’s “kindness, humor, wisdom, and love.” Related:[Steve Silberman]Silberman was born on December 23, 1957, studied psychology and English literature, and moved to San Francisco, California in 1979 to live “a gay life without fear,” he said. He contributed to and grew from the city’s counter-cultural movement, spending his 20s working as a teaching assistant for gay beat poet Allen Ginsberg, becoming a devoted fan and historian of the psychedelic band The Grateful Dead, establishing a friendship and podcast co-hosting with legendary musician David Crosby, and helping as a “gay coach” to famed neurologist Oliver Sacks. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. During Silberman’s 20 years contributing and editing for the science and tech magazine Wired, he wrote a 2002 profile of Sacks, author of The Man Who Mistook His Wife and Awakenings. The two men became friends after their conversation. He was traumatized when his mother said to him, “You are an abhorrent. I wish you never were born” – he had not had a relationship in 30 years. So I became his gay coach, talking about his work and his feelings about being gay.” Silberman married his husband, a high school science teacher, in 2003. Silberman, who was formerly known as Twitter, posted pictures of himself and his husband with friends, old photos of Sacks and Ginsburg, posts about his recent projects, collaborations, and humorous messages mocking MAGA Republicans’ extreme anti-LGBTQ+ beliefs. pic.twitter.com/Npzxt6843F — Steve Silberman (@stevesilberman) February 14, 2023 Steve Silberman’s December 2012 Wired article “The Geek Syndrome” helped raise widespread awareness about autism, its symptoms and its prevalence among children and adults. Previous to his article, the most popular web articles about autism pondered the repeatedly debunked conspiracy theory that vaccines cause autism, Silberman told PBS NewsHour in a 2016 interview. Silberman was inundated with emails after the publication of his article from people who were struggling to find support for themselves or their children’s autism. He then wrote his 2015 groundbreaking book NeuroTribes. It is a history of how autism has changed over the last century. His history revealed that Nazis persecuted LGBTQ+ individuals, Jews and transgender health care clinicians, driving out the first researchers of autism. It was also credited with helping to reduce stigma, shame, and misconceptions surrounding autistic people. It is also credited with helping reduce misconceptions, shame, and stigma surrounding autistic people. Silberman himself didn’t have autism; he even once described himself as “hyper neuro-typical.” Nevertheless, his contribution is especially important considering the increasing links between autism and the LGBTQ+ community.”My very being was defined as a form of mental illness in the diagnostic manual of disorders until 1974,” Silberman told The Guardian. Silberman told The Guardian that “my very being was defined as a form of mental illness in the diagnostic manual of disorders until 1974.”